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Record
Number of Daughters Leading "Sons
of Italy"
Press
Contact: Kylie Cafiero, (202) 547-2900 kcafiero@osia.org
WASHINGTON,
D.C. - September 6, 2005 As
a result of recent state and national
elections, women now hold more positions
of leadership in OSIA than ever before
in the organization's 100-year history.
Various
state conventions held in June of
this year and the national convention
held last August elected women to
hold the following positions:
• 50% of all filial
lodge presidencies
• 40% of all grand lodge presidencies
• 40% of the Supreme Council posts
 The
filial lodges, found coast-to-coast,
are the backbone of OSIA's unique
grassroots network. They are
governed by grand lodges or state
chapters, which today number
19.
The Supreme Council is the
organization's national governing
board, made up of 62 elected
officers, including Vincent Sarno,
the current president, five vice
presidents, past national presidents,
grand lodge presidents and national
trustees.
The first woman to hold
a position of national leadership was Louise Porreca,
who was elected to serve on the Supreme Council as a national trustee
in 1935, when the Order was only 30 years old.
Thirty years later, in 1965, Grace Campisi became the first female state president when she was elected by the Grand Lodge of Florida in 1965. As a result of this year's elections, seven women now serve as grand lodge presidents. Four states elected women as presidents for the first time in their respective histories: California (Vera
Girolami); Michigan (Linda Fabiano); New Jersey (Anna
Marie Rotonda) and West Virginia (Jeanne Ameli).
Joanne
Strollo made OSIA history in 1993 when she was became
the first woman elected OSIA national president.
Strollo served from 1993-95 and
remains the only woman national
president to date.
"As these figures so accurately attest, OSIA is and
has been for many years the leading national organization
that represents all Italian Americans, and we are very
proud of that fact. Women have always been equal partners
in the Order since 1905," says OSIA President Sarno. "I
have great respect for their abilities and expect the
number of OSIA's women leaders to grow even greater."
OSIA
is the largest and oldest national organization for
men and women of Italian descent in the United States.
Established in 1905, OSIA has more than 600,000 members
and supporters and a network of more than 700 lodges
or chapters coast to coast.
OSIA works at the community,
national and international levels to promote the heritage
and culture of an estimated 26 million Italian Americans,
the nation's
fifth largest ethnic group, according to the U.S. Census Bureau. To learn
more, visit OSIA on the Web at www.osia.org.
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